A Mother’s Journey From Colorism to Embracing Brown Skin

Lakshmi Iyer writes about how skin colour affected the way she saw herself while growing up.

She often compared her darker skin with lighter-skinned people.

Her family and society had ideas about which kinds of beauty were preferred.

As a mother, she became more aware of race and colourism.

When her daughter was born, someone immediately commented on the baby’s dark skin.

Years later, Iyer noticed that she had also started thinking about her child’s skin colour.

This made her examine the beliefs she had learned.

She wants people, including her younger self, to know that standing out can be better than trying to blend in.